A four-hour drive southwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul, this 282-acre site operated by the National Park Service is built around a series of quarries of a terracotta-colored stone called catlinite (aka pipestone), worked by First Nations people as far back as 3,000 years. As its name implies, pipestone was used to craft ceremonial pipes which were important to the ritual practices of the Plains tribes including the Iowa, Omaha, and Yankton Dakota. Beside the 3/4-mile Circle Trail to view the quarries, there´s a charming waterfall on the site as well, plus of course a visitor center to provide background and from which ranger-led tours depart.
Read more in my post 9 of the Top Minnesota Musts.
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